Dates in office

Political party

Major acts

Interesting facts

“In youth, the absence of pleasure is pain, in old age the absence of pain is pleasure.”

Henry Addington’s historical reputation owes less to his brief spell as Prime Minister than to his later career as a famously reactionary Home Secretary after becoming Viscount Sidmouth.

However, his achievement as premier during a difficult period of international conflict has been underestimated. He rose to the premiership from a family background in the lesser gentry and professions, and he can claim to have delivered the first budget speech. His time in office marked significant developments in the evolution of British government and the British governing class.